As a cyclist I always take the lane and not the bike lane when in the intersection when I want to proceed to somerville ave. Aside from drivers being oblivious of this complex intersection bikers need to be WAY more assertive and alert drivers as to which direction they are traveling. Drivers also need to respect when cyclists take the lane for their own safety.

niki, I get what you're saying, but please be very careful not to give the appearance of blaming the victim. I don't think it's what you meant, but it could be read that way.

The driver in this case was clearly at fault.

Oh not blaming the victim at all. The comment about being more agressive/assertive was a general comment about cyclists. Bike like you are a car on the road. Obey laws. Take the lane when you need to.

Good Morning,

Thank You all for reaching out to the City about this issue. I have created a work order 289700 so the engineering dept can investigate this area. As soon as I have any information I will inform you all . Have A Great Day.

+1 voice to how badly this needs attention.

As an occasional driver through this I've been confused about how I'll be getting to Summer, and then had to make a snap decision to turn right. This is very dangerous to cyclists - most drivers will not make that snap decision with proper care.

I agree that sharrows would be better than lanes here, but only because the lanes give cyclists's a false sense of security. While taking the lane is the safest thing for cyclists to do here, it's not something the more timid cyclists will do, and they're the ones who need to be accommodated safely and properly.

I believe I was the biker mentioned in this post (hi Jonah!). I did signal at this intersection, even though I technically shouldn't have to, but cars are often going too fast to safely merge into that lane, and usually don't signal one way or the other.

I think the bike lane can stay as long as the entire intersection is redesigned so you actually turn right to go onto summer st. That said, paint is easier, and perhaps removing the bike lane entirely would make things safer, especially given the awkward angled parking that precedes the intersection.

The whole of Bow Street is an awful design for motorists and cyclists. When cars end up in bike lanes, and bikes have to go in the main lane for safety suggests to me that the design has failed miserably. In order to get some more parking, traffic has been slowed and safety decreased. As a cyclist and motorist who uses this regularly I say get rid of the bike lane and put in sharrows

Having the bike lane on the same side as an area where cars have to reverse into parking is a disaster waiting to happen. Are we seriously going to wait until someone gets killed, not injured as a result of this design. I am a driver and see cyclists veering in and out of the bike lane, most times they are avoiding someone else, but this is clearly somewhere where the bicycle lane should be on the left side.

Not for nothing, but I think it needs to be said that sometimes cyclists need NOT to be more assertive/aggressive to "claim" their traffic rights, but a little more cautious. I know it sucks - bc everyone (drivers and cyclists) likes to fly around unimpeded - but just as drivers need to drive defensively - ie, yielding even when they shouldn't "have" to to avoid an accident - so do cyclists. Sometimes that means even braking! A spindly little bike with an exposed human on it is going to take the worst of it in a collision. Everyone needs to just chill and offer each other a little leeway in sucky traffic sitches. If your "rights" are trampled...well, better that than your hide.

It's just traffic, right?

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Ms Richards, this reads like you're arguing with a straw-man. Who exactly is arguing against cyclists riding defensively and "sometimes [...] even braking!"? The issue here is how often cyclists are endangered /while/ they ride defensively and with care. Reading what you wrote I can't believe you regularly cycle through this intersection or any other. It reads like you're trying to dismiss complaints as being about an unreasonable sense of entitlement. When I'm minding my own business riding carefully in a bike lane and someone without warning tries to drive through me without looking the problem is NOT that I'm insufficiently chilled about it.

I just want to note that 1) this ticket is three years old and 2) Somerville no longer monitors SeeClickFix. So if you're here to chat, carry on! But if you're looking to communicate with the City of Somerville then best to repost at https://www.somervillema.gov/311

Oh!! Ho-ho-ho....3 years old?? Good spot! Ok, I'm out.

Assertive cyclist tend to live out their lives disabled or worse. The car outweighs you and your bike by tons. Always remember that!
In this case you can be both right and dead. Think about it!

@gnaff9093 agreed

It seems that we can shout this as loud as we possibly can but the City simply will ignore it until someone is laying dead on the pavement. Why is it so difficult to prioritize human lives above vehicular traffic?

The original post is from 2014....

All traffic (car, bike, pedestrian, skateboard, etc.) should be prohibited in this area in order to keep everyone safe. There, problem solved. You're welcome.

On the subject of assertive cyclists vs. those who yield to avoid injury when they shouldn't have to: yes, and also every one of us who yields to a bully teaches bullies that their strategy is effective. That's not a good long-term solution either. The only thing that works against a culture of bullying is shutting it down. That's exactly why we pay the police... why aren't they doing their job? Vigilanteism is a terrible solution, but possibly better than no social punishment of bullying...?